Soupe des chiens at Chateau Cheverny. The Huralt family still keeps 70 hounds for la chasse. A daily attraction at the chateau is the feeding of the hounds. It is described as the hounds hungrily waiting after the raw meat is placed before them until the trainer signals them to eat. All 70 hounds run into a publicly viewed feeding pen together with raw meat awaiting them. We expected to see extreme dog self restraint, but actually the trainer provides the restraint in the form of a large bull whip. He only had to wave it to keep the hounds in check. 70 hungry hunting dogs competing to eat raw meat illustrates "it's a dog eat dog world." At least one chien lost a bit of its tail, and any poop that fell was promptly eaten too. Another terrific contrast with US culture -- Get PETA on speed dial. Send some folks over to chain themselves to the gates. Here in France, the crowd gathers 15 min in advance.